Andra AP fonden Makes New Investment in Block, Inc. $XYZ

Andra AP fonden purchased a new stake in Block, Inc. (NYSE:XYZ) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 108,600 shares of the technology company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,377,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of XYZ. ARK Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Block in the second quarter worth about $210,016,000. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Block during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $204,223,000. Bessemer Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Block in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $62,389,000. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale bought a new stake in shares of Block in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,353,000. Finally, Strs Ohio acquired a new position in Block during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $21,352,000. Institutional investors own 70.44% of the company’s stock.

Block Stock Performance

XYZ stock opened at $65.49 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $75.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $69.78. The company has a market capitalization of $39.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.20, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 2.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 1.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Block, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $44.27 and a fifty-two week high of $99.26.

Block (NYSE:XYZ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The technology company reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.25 by $0.29. The company had revenue of $6.11 billion for the quarter. Block had a net margin of 12.99% and a return on equity of 8.49%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.53 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Block, Inc. will post 2.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Chrysty Esperanza sold 406 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.77, for a total value of $30,356.62. Following the sale, the insider owned 126,806 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,481,284.62. The trade was a 0.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Ajmere Dale sold 750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $60,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 102,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,184,640. This trade represents a 0.73% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 119,041 shares of company stock valued at $9,052,531 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 10.85% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on XYZ. Needham & Company LLC dropped their target price on Block from $100.00 to $80.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. BNP Paribas cut shares of Block from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $86.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Block from $94.00 to $86.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Block from $76.00 to $84.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on shares of Block from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have assigned a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $82.58.

Block Company Profile

Square, Inc provides payment and point-of-sale solutions in the United States and internationally. The company's commerce ecosystem includes point-of-sale software and hardware that enables sellers to turn mobile and computing devices into payment and point-of-sale solutions. It offers hardware products, including Magstripe reader, which enables swiped transactions of magnetic stripe cards; Contactless and chip reader that accepts EMV® chip cards and Near Field Communication payments; Chip card reader, which accepts EMV® chip cards and enables swiped transactions of magnetic stripe cards; Square Stand, which enables an iPad to be used as a payment terminal or full point of sale solution; and Square Register that combines its hardware, point-of-sale software, and payments technology, as well as managed payments solutions.